Some environmentalists said they hope the accident will have the same effect as a massive spill in 1969 off Santa Barbara, Calif., that coated beaches with oil and prompted moratoriums against drilling off both the California and Florida coasts.

"This is just a huge wake-up call that this is not a risk we should be taking," said Marcie Keever of Friends of the Earth.

Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Fla., who has opposed President Barack Obama's proposal for drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico, said the accident "brings into question the industry's claims about safety and advanced technology."

"We need to be asking a lot more tough questions of Big Oil," Nelson said. "I think we need to look back over 10 years or so to see if the record denies the industry's claims about safety and technology."

"We need the increased production," Gibbs said last week. "The president still continues to believe the great majority of that can be done safely, securely and without any harm to the environment."

Chris John, a former Louisiana Democratic congressman from Crowley who now is president of the Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association, said that as tragic as last week's rig accident was -- with 11 workers believed to have died -- the industry's safety record has been very good.

"It is very unfortunate what happened," John said." Like any industry, many of the energy industries come with risks. But it does not stop our need for energy to fuel our economy and secure America. And the track record has been pretty good."

Three senators were to introduce a climate-change bill Monday that was to include new drilling with financial incentives for states that agreed to accept oil and gas development off their coasts. The news conference was canceled when Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., one of the three negotiators, said he could not agree to the package because he said Senate Democrats were going to first take up a contentious immigration bill.

Graham said his change of heart had nothing to do with the Louisiana rig accident, but opponents said the accident would have made it tougher for any new drilling provisions to be adopted.

Melanie Driscoll, director of bird conservation for the National Audubon Society, said it's too early to come to any firm conclusions about the Louisiana rig accident.

"I think there are several things that emerge; one is that anywhere there is energy extraction there is risk to the environment and to human communities and we need to focus on renewable clean energy sources." But she said it's also clear that oil and gas will continue to be needed, as the country moves to cleaner energy, and that drilling will have a place in the United States for years to come.

Driscoll, who works in Baton Rouge, said she hopes that lessons will be learned from the Louisiana rig tragedy to avoid future accidents that cost lives and trigger environmental damage. Driscoll said she worries about serious environmental consequences for sea life and birds from the accident.

The American Petroleum Institute, which represents major oil and gas companies, said the industry is committed to making safety the top priority.

"The industry is committed to a goal of zero fatalities, zero injuries and zero incidents, and every incident is both one too many and a powerful incentive to improve training, operational procedures, regulations, industry standards and technology," API said in a statement.